Solid state transducer dies having reflective features over contacts and associated systems and methods

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods for improved light emitting efficiency of a solid state transducer (SST), for example light emitting diodes (LED), are disclosed. One embodiment of an SST die in accordance with the technology includes a reflective material disposed over electrical connectors on a front side of the die. The reflective material has a higher reflectivity than a base material of the connectors such that light traveling toward the connectors reflects back out of the device.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/482,176 filed May 29, 2012, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present technology generally relates to solid state transducer (SST) dies having patterned contacts. For example, several embodiments of the present technology are related to improving the light output of a light emitting diode (LED) by reflecting light from contacts located on and/or in the light emitting materials.

BACKGROUND

SST dies are used in a wide variety of products and applications related to emitting and/or sensing radiation. Several types of SST dies that emit electromagnetic radiation in the visible light spectrum are used in mobile phones, personal digital assistants (“PDAs”), digital cameras, MP3 players, computers, tablets, and other portable electronic devices for backlighting and other purposes. SST dies are also used for signage, indoor lighting, outdoor lighting, vehicle lighting, and other types of general illumination.

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view of a conventional SST die 10 a having lateral configuration. As shown in FIG. 1A, the SST die 10 a includes an SST 40 on a growth substrate 17. The SST 40 can be an LED having a transduction structure 30 comprising an active material 15 between layers of N-type GaN 16 and P-type GaN 14. The active material 15 contains gallium nitride/indium gallium nitride (GaN/InGaN) multiple quantum wells (“MQWs”). The SST 40 also includes a P-type contact 18 on the P-type GaN 14 and an N-type contact 19 on the N-type GaN 16. In operation, electrical power provided to the SST die 10 a via the P-type and N-type contacts 18 and 19 causes the active material 15 to emit light.

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view of another conventional SST die 10 b in which the P-type and N-type contacts 18 and 19 are in a vertical configuration. During formation of the SST die 10 b, the N-type GaN material 16, active material 15 and P-type GaN material 14 are grown on a growth substrate (not shown in FIG. 1B), which can be similar to the growth substrate 17. After forming the transduction structure 30, a carrier 20 is attached to the P-type contact 18. For example, one side of the P-type contact 18 can be attached to the P-type GaN 14 and the other side of the P-type contact 18 can be attached to the carrier 20 using a bond material 22, which can be composed of metal or metal alloy layers. The bond material can be a Ni-Sn-Ni stack such that one Ni layer contacts the carrier 20 and the other Ni layer contacts the P-type contact 18. Other bond materials, such as CuSn and/or TiSi, can be used. Next, the growth substrate can be removed and the N-type contact 19 can be formed on the N-type GaN 16. The structure is then inverted to produce the orientation shown in FIG. 1B.

Most electronic devices and many other applications require a white light output. However, true white light LEDs are not available because LEDs typically emit light at only one particular wavelength. For human eyes to perceive the color white, a mixture of wavelengths is needed. One conventional technique for emulating white light with LEDs includes depositing a converter material (e.g., a phosphor) on an LED. For example, FIG. 2A shows a conventional lighting device 30 a that includes a device substrate 50, an SST die 10 a or 10 b mounted on the device substrate 50, and a converter material 60 on the SST die 10 a-b. The light emitted from the SST 40 undergoes at least partial conversion while passing through the converter material 60 as explained in more detail below with respect to FIG. 2C.

Multiple SST dies 10 a-b can be used in a lighting device. For example, FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view of a conventional multi-SST lighting device 30 b having the device substrate 50, a plurality of SST dies 10 a-b attached to the device substrate 50, and the converter material 60 over the SST dies 10 a-b. The multi-SST lighting device 30 b also has a single lens 80 over the SST dies 10 a-b. Other conventional multi-SST lighting devices may have a dedicated lens per SST or a group of SSTs. All the SSTs 40 in the multi-SST lighting device 30 b are typically connected to a common anode and cathode such that all of the SST dies 10 a-b operate together.

FIG. 2C schematically illustrates the light frequency conversion and scattering/reflection in a conventional lighting device 30 c in which the lens 80 encloses the SST 40 and the converter material 60. The SST 40 emits blue light (B) that can stimulate the converter material 60 to emit light at a different frequency, e.g., yellow light (Y). Some blue light (B) emitted by the SST 40 passes through the converter material without stimulating the converter material 60. Other blue light (B) emitted by the SST 40 stimulates the converter material 60, which, in turn, emits yellow light (Y). The combination of the emissions of blue light (B) from the SST 40 and the emissions of yellow light (Y) from the converter material 60 is designed to appear white to a human eye if the blue and yellow emissions are matched appropriately. However, not all light emitted by the SST 40 ultimately leaves the lighting device 30 c. For instance, the converter material 60 scatters some blue light (B) back toward the SST 40. Additionally, some light that reaches the outer edge of the single lens 80 reflects back toward the converter material 60 and further toward the SST 40.

FIGS. 3A-3C show top views of several conventional lighting devices constructed as schematically illustrated in FIGS. 1B and 2A with different patterns of N-type contacts over the N-type GaN of the SSTs 40. The patterns of N-contacts are designed to distribute electrical current through the N-type GaN to other relevant parts of the SST. Some examples of the N-contact patterns are rail-type N-contacts running within the outline of the SST 40 (FIG. 3A), dot-type N-contacts distributed over the SST 40 (FIG. 3B), and rail-type N-contacts extending beyond the outline of the SST 40 (FIG. 3C). The N-contacts 19 can cover an appreciable percentage of the surface area of the SST 40. Since the N-contacts 19 may absorb a significant portion of the light that is scattered from the converter material, refracted from the lens 80, or reflected from other objects (not shown), the N-contacts 19 are relatively “dark regions” on the surface of the SST that reduce the output. Consequently, even though a particular N-contact layout may improve the distribution of electrical current through the SST 40, conventional N-contacts may impair the visual appearance and reduce the efficiency of the device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Many aspects of the present disclosure can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale. Instead, emphasis is placed on clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. Furthermore, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

FIG. 1A is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of an SST die having lateral contacts in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 1B is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of an SST die having vertical contacts in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 2A is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of an SST lighting device having a converter material in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 2B is a partially schematic cross-sectional illustration of a multi-SST lighting device having a lens in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 2C is a schematic illustration of light refraction and reflection from the converter material and lens in accordance with the prior art.

FIGS. 3A-3C are top views schematically illustrating N-contact layouts for SST devices in accordance with the prior art.

FIG. 4A is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of an SST die in accordance with an embodiment of the presently disclosed technology.

FIG. 4B is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of a packaged SST device with a lens in accordance with an embodiment of the presently disclosed technology.

FIGS. 5A and 5B are partially schematic, cross-sectional illustrations of SST dies in accordance with another embodiment of the presently disclosed technology.

FIG. 6 is a partially schematic, cross-sectional illustration of a packaged SST device with a lens in accordance with another embodiment of the presently disclosed technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Specific details of several embodiments of representative SST dies and associated methods of manufacturing SST dies are described below. The term “SST” generally refers to a solid-state transducer that includes a semiconductor material as an active medium to convert electrical energy into electromagnetic radiation in the visible, ultraviolet, infrared, and/or other spectra. For example, SST dies include solid-state light emitters (e.g., LED dies, laser diodes, etc.) and/or sources of emission other than conventional electrical filaments, plasmas, or gases. LEDs include semiconductor LEDs, PLEDs (polymer light emitting diodes), OLEDs (organic light emitting diodes), and/or other types of solid state devices that convert electrical energy into electromagnetic radiation in a desired spectrum. In some embodiments, SST dies can include solid-state devices that convert electromagnetic radiation into electricity. A person skilled in the relevant art will also understand that the technology may have additional embodiments, and that the technology may be practiced without several of the details of the embodiments described below with reference to FIGS. 4A-6.

Briefly described, several embodiments of SST dies and devices having SST dies disclosed below improve the emitting efficiency compared to the conventional devices described above with reference to FIGS. 1A-3C. When energized, the active material of the SST emits light, but a portion of the light refracts or reflects back toward the SST die from either the converter material or the interface between the lens and air. The electrical contacts on the conventional SST dies absorb the returned light, which reduces the light output and creates an appearance of undesirable dark areas on the surface of the SST die. To resolve this problem, several embodiments of the present technology have a reflective material over, covering, or otherwise proximate to at least a portion of selected electrical contacts to reflect the returned light away from the electrical contacts. For example, depending on the orientation of the die, the reflective material can be on, above (upward facing dies), below (downward facing dies), and/or around the selected electrical contacts. This reduces absorption of the light by the contacts and concomitantly increases the efficiency and enhances the visual appearance of the SST die.

FIG. 4A illustrates an SST die 100 a in accordance with embodiments of the presently disclosed technology. The SST die 100 a can have a support substrate 120 and an SST 130 attached to the support substrate 120 using a bond material 122. The SST 130 can have a transduction structure 131 that includes an active material 135 (e.g., gallium nitride/indium gallium nitride (GaN/InGaN) having multiple quantum wells) between a first semiconductor material 133 (e.g., P-type GaN) defining a back side 132a of the transduction structure 131 and a second semiconductor material 137 (e.g., N-type GaN) defining a front side 132b of the transduction structure 131. In general, the front side 132 b faces in the direction E that light or other radiation passes from and/or to the SST 130, while the back side 132 a faces toward the support substrate 120. The SST 130 can further include a first connector 141 (e.g., P-type connector) at the back side 132 a of the transduction structure 131 and one or more second connectors 142 (e.g., N-type connectors) the front side 132 b of the transduction structure 131. The second connectors 142 can be, for example, elongated rails or distributed dots disposed over the front side 132 b of the SST 130. The layout and shape of the second connectors 142 is selected to distribute electrical current flow through the transduction structure 131. The bond material 122 can be a stack of Ni and Sn materials. Other bond materials are also possible. The illustrated support substrate 120 has the same width as the SST 130, i.e., the sides of the support substrate 120 are aligned with the sides of the SST 130, but the support substrate 120 can also be wider and deeper than the outline of the SST 130.

The second connectors 142 can include a base material 143 on the second semiconductor material 137 and a current spreading material 144 on the base material 143. The second connectors 142 can further include a reflective material 146 over (e.g., on, covering, around and/or otherwise proximate to) the base material 143 and the current-spreading metal 144. In some embodiments of the SST die 100a, the second connectors 142 do not include the current spreading material 144 such that the reflective material 146 directly contacts the base material. The reflective material 146 can be deposited over the base material 143 and/or over the current-spreading material 144 using vacuum evaporation, sputtering, or chemical vapor deposition or other suitable processes known in the art.

The base material 143 and/or the current spreading material 144 of the second connectors 142 can have a first reflectivity. The base material 143, for example, can be a titanium-aluminum alloy, other alloys of aluminum, aluminum, and/or other suitable conductive materials. The current spreading material 144 should have good electrical conductivity and avoid adverse interaction with the base material 143 and the reflective material 146. The current spreading material 144, for example, can be gold. The reflective material 146 can have a second reflectivity greater than the first reflectivity of the base material 143 and/or the current spreading material 144. The reflective material 146, for example, can be silver, a silver alloy, aluminum, polished metals, or other materials having high a reflectivity. The first connector 141, which can be a P-type connector, should also have a high reflectivity to reflect the emitted and the returned light away from the first connector 141. The first connector 141, for example, can also be silver or a silver alloy.

FIG. 4B illustrates a packaged SST device 100 b that includes the SST die 100 a, a converter material 160 over the SST die 100 a, and a lens 180 over the converter material 160. In operation, a portion of the light scattered/reflected from the converter material 160 and/or the lens 180 returns toward the SST 130 and impinges either on the reflective material 146 or the active material 130. The reflective material 146 reflects most of the light away from the front side 132 b of the transduction structure 130 such that the additional reflected light increases the overall efficiency of the SST die 100 a compared to conventional devices without the reflective material 146. Furthermore, the second connectors 142 do not appear as dark compared to the connectors in conventional configurations without the reflective material 146 .

FIG. 5A illustrates an SST die 200 a in accordance with another embodiment of the presently disclosed technology. The SST die 200 a is similar to the embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 4A-4B, but the SST die 200 a has a buried contact. In the illustrated embodiment, the SST die 200 a has an SST 230 with a transduction structure 231 including an active material 235 between a first semiconductor material 233 and a second semiconductor material 237. The first semiconductor material 233 may be a P-type GaN and the second semiconductor material 237 may be an N-type GaN, or alternatively the first semiconductor material 233 may be an N-type GaN and the second semiconductor material 237 may be a P-type GaN.

The SST 230 also has a first connector 241 at a back side 232 a of the transduction structure 231 and a second connector 242 buried in the transduction structure 231 under a front side 232 b of the transduction structure 231. The first connector 241 can be a P-type connector electrically coupled to the P-type first semiconductor material 233, and the second connector 242 can be an N-type connector electrically coupled to the second semiconductor material 237. The second connector 242 can include a conductive base material 243 having a first reflectivity and a reflective material 246 having a second reflectivity over (e.g., on, covering and/or at least proximate to) at least a portion of the base material 243 that faces the front side 232 b of the SST 230. The second reflectivity of the reflective material 246 is greater than the first reflectivity of the base material 243.

The SST 230 further includes an insulation material 240 electrically separating the base material 243 of the second connector 242 from the active material 235, the first semiconductor material 233, and the first connector 241. Suitable insulation materials include, for example, ceramics, oxides, polymers, epoxies, and other dielectric materials know to persons skilled in the art. The SST 230, which includes the transduction structure 231, the first connector 241, the second connector 242, and the insulation material 240, can be bonded to a support substrate 220 by a bond material 222. The support substrate 220 and the bond material 222 can be similar to those described in reference to FIGS. 4A-4B.

In operation, an electrical current flowing through the first and the second connectors 241 and 242 causes the transduction structure 231 to emit light. A portion of the emitted light refracts/reflects back toward the reflective material 246, which in turn reflects this light away from the SST 230. The SST 230 with the reflective cover 246 accordingly improves the output efficiency and reduces dark areas compared to configurations without the reflective material 246.

FIG. 5B illustrates an SST die 200 b in accordance with another embodiment of the presently disclosed technology. Here, the reflective material 246 completely covers the portion of the second connector 242 in electrical contact with the second semiconductor material 237. For example, the side and top surfaces of the upper portion of the second connector 242 can be coated by the reflective materials 246. The increased coverage of the second connector 242 by the reflective material 246 can further increase the amount of light emitted by the device.

FIG. 6 illustrates an SST device 300 having the SST die 200 a of FIG. 5A, a converter material 360, and a lens 380. In operation, a portion of the light emitted from the active material 235 can scatter from the converter material 60 or reflect from the edge of the lens 80. The scattered/reflected light reflects from the reflective material 246, and as described above, the higher reflectivity of the reflective material 246 increases the amount of light that is emitted by the SST device 300.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments of the technology have been described herein for purposes of illustration, but that various modifications may be made without deviating from the disclosure. For example, different materials can be used for SST devices and/or the substrates in further embodiments. Furthermore, the structures of the devices may differ from those shown in the Figures. For example, several SST dies can be combined into one SST device and/or one package. The reflective material can be used to at least partially cover the substrate carrier to further increase overall amount of the light reflected outside of the SST die. In at least some embodiments, the insulation material facing toward outside of the SST die can be partially covered with the reflective material, while preserving the function of the insulation material. Moreover, while various advantages and features associated with certain embodiments have been described above in the context of those embodiments, other embodiments may also exhibit such advantages and/or features, and not all embodiments need necessarily exhibit such advantages and/or features to fall within the scope of the technology. Accordingly, the disclosure can encompass other embodiments not expressly shown or described herein. 

We claim:
 1. A light emitting diode (LED), comprising: a transduction structure including a back side, a front side opposite the back side, a first semiconductor material having a surface at the back side, a second semiconductor material having a surface at the front side, and an active material between the first and second semiconductor materials; a first electrical connector electrically coupled to the first semiconductor material; and a second electrical connector having— a base material electrically coupled to the second semiconductor material, a buried contact having the base material extending through the first semiconductor material and the active material from the back side of the transduction structure to a depth in the second semiconductor material, a reflective material over the base material, wherein the reflective material has a higher reflectivity than the base material, and wherein the reflective material covers at least a portion of the base material within the second semiconductor material, and an insulation material electrically isolating the second electrical connector from the first semiconductor material and the active material.
 2. The LED of claim 1 wherein the base material is at least one of a Ti-Al alloy and Al, and the reflective material is at least one of Al, Ag or an Ag alloy.
 3. The LED of claim 1 wherein the base material comprises: a top side facing the first side of the transduction structure, and a lateral side facing the insulation material, wherein the reflective material covers at least the top side and a portion of the lateral side of the base material.
 4. A light emitting diode (LED) device, comprising: a support substrate; an LED die on the support substrate, the LED die including— a back side facing the support substrate, a front side opposite the back side, a first semiconductor material having a first surface at the back side, a second semiconductor material having a second surface at the front side, and an active material between the first and second semiconductor materials; a first electrical connector electrically coupled to the first semiconductor material; a second electrical connector comprising a buried contact having— a base material extending through the first semiconductor material and the active material to a depth in the second semiconductor material, and a reflective material covering at least a portion of the base material within the second semiconductor material, wherein the reflective material has a higher reflectivity than the base material; an insulation material electrically isolating the second electrical connector from the first semiconductor material and the active material; a converter material disposed at least partially around the active semiconductor material; and a lens forming a cavity for housing at least the LED die.
 5. A method of manufacturing light emitting diode (LED) dies, comprising: forming a transduction structure having a back side, a front side opposite the back side, a first semiconductor material having a first surface at the back side, a second semiconductor material having a second surface at the front side, and an active material between the first and second semiconductor materials; forming a first electrical connector electrically coupled to the first semiconductor material; forming a second electrical connector electrically coupled to the second semiconductor material by— electrically coupling a base material of the second electrical connector to the second semiconductor material, and depositing a reflective material over the base material, wherein the reflective material has a higher reflectivity than the base material; and disposing an insulation material electrically between the second electrical connector and each of the first semiconductor material and the active material.
 6. The method of claim 5 wherein forming the second electrical connector comprises constructing a buried contact having the base material extending through the first semiconductor material and the active material from the back side of the transduction structure to a depth in the second semiconductor material.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein the base material is at least one of a Ti-Al alloy and Al, and the reflective material is at least one of Al, Ag or an Ag alloy. 